Roughly Speaking (film)
Encyclopedia
Roughly Speaking is a drama/comedy starring Rosalind Russell
and Jack Carson
. The plot involves a strong-minded mother keeping her family afloat through World War I
and the Great Depression
. The movie was based on the autobiography of the same name by Louise Randall Pierson.
Then, though they have very different ideas about a woman's place, she marries Rodney Crane, who goes to work in the banking industry. Four children are born in rapid succession. Louise nurses her brood through a bout of infantile paralysis; one is left somewhat lame. After ten years though, Rodney tires of her self-reliance and divorces her to marry a younger woman more in keeping with his conservative idea of what a wife should be.
A year later, Louise meets Harold C. Pierson, who is less driven, but just as unconventional. After only a few hours acquaintance, he asks her to marry him, and she (somewhat to her own surprise) accepts. They have a son.
Louise inspires Harold to venture into his family's business and take out a loan to build greenhouses to grow roses. They are just about to clear the last $30,000 of their debt when the market collapses due to oversupply. They have to sell off most of their possessions and take to the road. They then encounter Svend Olsen, an aircraft builder in need of financing. Harold and the children overcome her resistance, and they commit their time and money to the venture. However, once again, their timing is bad. The day after the airplane is completed and shown to enthusiastic potential backers, the stock market crashes
. The family is uprooted once more.
Two sons go to Yale University
, and one of the daughters gets married. The rest of the family manages to get by with various jobs. Then, on Louise's birthday, the United States enters World War II
. All three sons enlist; the youngest is only seventeen, but gets his mother's reluctant consent to join the Army Reserve
. As he eagerly rushes off to the recruitment center, Louise laments to her husband about her failure to provide their children with a stable, prosperous life. He assures her that her indomitable example, undaunted by failure after failure, is all they need, that they may be down from time to time, but will never be out. Then the two start to discuss their next project, buying a farm.
Rosalind Russell
Rosalind Russell was an American actress of stage and screen, perhaps best known for her role as a fast-talking newspaper reporter in the Howard Hawks screwball comedy His Girl Friday, as well as the role of Mame Dennis in the film Auntie Mame...
and Jack Carson
Jack Carson
John Elmer "Jack" Carson was a Canadian-born U.S.-based film actor.Jack Carson was one of the most popular character actors during the 'golden age of Hollywood', with a film career spanning the 1930s, '40s and '50s...
. The plot involves a strong-minded mother keeping her family afloat through World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. The movie was based on the autobiography of the same name by Louise Randall Pierson.
Plot
Louise Randall Pierson does not have an easy life. When she is a teenager, her beloved father dies, leaving her, her mother, and her sister in financial difficulty. However, heeding her father's advice to shoot for the stars, she remains undaunted. She goes to college and learns typing and shorthand; on her first (temporary) job, she overcomes the prejudice of her new boss, Lew Morton, against women workers.Then, though they have very different ideas about a woman's place, she marries Rodney Crane, who goes to work in the banking industry. Four children are born in rapid succession. Louise nurses her brood through a bout of infantile paralysis; one is left somewhat lame. After ten years though, Rodney tires of her self-reliance and divorces her to marry a younger woman more in keeping with his conservative idea of what a wife should be.
A year later, Louise meets Harold C. Pierson, who is less driven, but just as unconventional. After only a few hours acquaintance, he asks her to marry him, and she (somewhat to her own surprise) accepts. They have a son.
Louise inspires Harold to venture into his family's business and take out a loan to build greenhouses to grow roses. They are just about to clear the last $30,000 of their debt when the market collapses due to oversupply. They have to sell off most of their possessions and take to the road. They then encounter Svend Olsen, an aircraft builder in need of financing. Harold and the children overcome her resistance, and they commit their time and money to the venture. However, once again, their timing is bad. The day after the airplane is completed and shown to enthusiastic potential backers, the stock market crashes
Wall Street Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , also known as the Great Crash, and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its fallout...
. The family is uprooted once more.
Two sons go to Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and one of the daughters gets married. The rest of the family manages to get by with various jobs. Then, on Louise's birthday, the United States enters World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. All three sons enlist; the youngest is only seventeen, but gets his mother's reluctant consent to join the Army Reserve
United States Army Reserve
The United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the reserve components of the United States Army....
. As he eagerly rushes off to the recruitment center, Louise laments to her husband about her failure to provide their children with a stable, prosperous life. He assures her that her indomitable example, undaunted by failure after failure, is all they need, that they may be down from time to time, but will never be out. Then the two start to discuss their next project, buying a farm.
Cast
- Rosalind RussellRosalind RussellRosalind Russell was an American actress of stage and screen, perhaps best known for her role as a fast-talking newspaper reporter in the Howard Hawks screwball comedy His Girl Friday, as well as the role of Mame Dennis in the film Auntie Mame...
as Louise Randall Pierson - Jack CarsonJack CarsonJohn Elmer "Jack" Carson was a Canadian-born U.S.-based film actor.Jack Carson was one of the most popular character actors during the 'golden age of Hollywood', with a film career spanning the 1930s, '40s and '50s...
as Harold C. Pierson - Robert HuttonRobert Hutton (actor)-Early life:Robert Hutton was the son of a hardware merchant and was a cousin of the Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton. He attended Blair Academy, a small, exclusive boarding school in Blairstown, New Jersey...
as John Crane, ages 20-28 - Jean SullivanJean SullivanJean Sullivan was an American actress and dancer. She acted in film, television and stage productions, and danced both flamenco and ballet, the latter with the American Ballet Theatre....
as Louise Jr., ages 18-26 - Donald WoodsDonald Woods (actor)Donald Woods was a Canadian-born American film and television actor whose career spanned six decades....
as Rodney Crane - Alan HaleAlan Hale, Sr.Alan Hale, Sr. was an American movie actor and director, most widely remembered for his many supporting character roles, in particular as frequent sidekick of Errol Flynn. His wife of over thirty years was Gretchen Hartman , a child actress and silent film player and mother of their three children...
as Lew Morton - Andrea KingAndrea KingAndrea King was an American film and stage actress. She was sometimes billed as Georgette McKee.-Early life:Andrea King was born Georgette André Barry in Paris, France...
as Barbara, ages 21-29 - Mona FreemanMona FreemanMona Freeman is an American film actress. The 5' 1" blonde was a model while in high school, and after becoming the first "Miss Subways" of the New York City transit system, eventually signed a movie contract with Howard Hughes. Her contract was later sold to Paramount Pictures. After 1944, she...
as Barbara, ages 15-20 - Robert ArthurRobert Arthur (actor)Robert Arthur was an American motion picture actor who appeared in dozens of films in the 1940s and 1950s....
as Frankie at 17 - Ray CollinsRay Collins (actor)Ray Bidwell Collins was an American actor in film, stage, radio, and television. One of Collins' best remembered roles was that of Lt. Arthur Tragg in the long-running series Perry Mason.- Biography :...
as John Chase Randall - John QualenJohn QualenJohn Qualen was a Canadian-American character actor of Norwegian heritage who specialized in Scandinavian roles....
as Svend Olsen - Kathleen LockhartKathleen LockhartKathleen Lockhart was an English-born stage actress.She was born Kathleen Arthur in Southsea, Hampshire in England. An actress and musician, Kathleen got her start on the stage in England and then immigrated to the United States in 1924, upon her marriage to Canadian-born actor Gene Lockhart...
as Henrietta Louise Randall - Ann E. Todd as Louise Randall as a child (as Ann Todd)
- Ann DoranAnn DoranAnn Lee Doran was an American character actress.-Early life and career:Born in Amarillo, Texas, Doran began acting at the age of four. She appeared in hundreds of silent films under assumed names to keep her father's family from finding out about her work...
as Alice Abbott